Quaternium-15
Also: Dowicil 200 · 1-(3-chloroallyl)-3,5,7-triaza-1-azoniaadamantane chloride · formaldehyde releaser
Avoid — formaldehyde-releasing preservative banned in EU cosmetics since 2023; one of the highest-potency formaldehyde releasers in personal care.
Testosterone & hormonal load
Quaternium-15 releases formaldehyde as its primary antimicrobial mechanism — releasing more formaldehyde per weight than most other formaldehyde-releasing preservatives. The EU banned quaternium-15 in cosmetics from 2023 (EU Regulation 2023/1545) due to formaldehyde carcinogenicity and allergenicity concerns. Formaldehyde has reproductive toxicity at occupational exposure levels; daily scalp or skin exposure represents repeated low-level exposure.
Found in.
Two jurisdictions, two different verdicts.
Banned in all cosmetics from December 2023 under EU Regulation 2023/1545.
Permitted in US cosmetics. No specific concentration limit.
The receipts.
- [01]EU Regulation 2023/1545 — Quaternium-15 ban in cosmeticseur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX:32023R1545
- [02]ACDS — Quaternium-15 Allergen of the Year 2005www.contactderm.org/i4a/pages/index.cfm?pageID=3465
- [03]IARC Monographs Vol. 88 — Formaldehydepublications.iarc.who.int/Book-And-Report-Series/Iarc-Monographs-On-The-Identification-Of-Carcinogenic-Hazards-To-Humans/Formaldehyde-2-Butoxyethanol-And-1--Em-Tert-Em--Butoxypropan-2-ol-2006
Find Quaternium-15 before it finds you.
Point the camera at any barcode. Mangood reads the ingredient list and tells you, in one tap, whether Quaternium-15 is hiding in the bottle in your hand.